Coronavirus Florida: New presumptive positive case in Santa Rosa County

By Kevin Robinson, USA TODAY Network

Thursday

Mar 5, 2020 at 12:05 PM

The affected individual is "elderly with severe underlying conditions" who had been engaged in international travel

Gov. Ron DeSantis said Thursday morning that a presumptive positive case of the new coronavirus has been identified in Santa Rosa County.

The affected individual is "elderly with severe underlying conditions," DeSantis said. "He had been doing international travel. He's not in shape to fully answer all the questions, so there's an investigation ongoing, but that is a presumptive positive. It has not been confirmed by the (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)."

Still, DeSantis said the Department of Health will be releasing more information on the case, but it is assumed the infection will be confirmed by the CDC.

Currently, there are two Florida residents with confirmed cases of COVID-19, one presumed positive case, five cases where Florida residents returning from abroad have been quarantined in other states and one case involving a non-Florida resident who is currently in our state.

Symptoms of COVID-19 can include fever, cough and breathing trouble. Most develop only mild symptoms. But some people, usually those with other medical complications, develop more severe symptoms, including pneumonia, which can be fatal.

To minimize the spread of COVID -19, people are asked to wash their hands frequently with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom, before eating and after blowing their nose, coughing or sneezing.